In this episode, Snejina Zacharia, SF ’13, a 2013 MIT Sloan Fellow from Bulgaria, transformed a personal insurance frustration into a $500 million business by founding Insurify, the "Kayak of insurance." After a minor car accident during her time at MIT caused her premiums to spike, she discovered the absence of a comprehensive insurance comparison platform and spent over a year convincing risk-averse carriers to join her marketplace. Despite facing significant challenges as a first-time female immigrant founder in a highly regulated industry, Zacharia built Insurify from a three-person team to nearly 200 employees through relentless persistence, strategic fundraising, and operational focus. Her journey exemplifies the MIT entrepreneurial spirit, emphasizing the importance of building the right founding team, maintaining financial discipline, and never giving up despite countless rejections—ultimately creating the largest online insurance comparison platform in the United States.

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In this episode of Sloanies Talking with Sloanies, host Christopher Reichert sits down with Raafet Azzouz, a 2024 Sloan Fellow at MIT Sloan, to explore his remarkable journey from a small town in Tunisia to global finance and entrepreneurship. Raafet shares how his early love for mathematics and humanities shaped his academic path through France, ultimately leading to senior roles at major financial institutions like JP Morgan and Bank of America Merrill Lynch. Despite his successful Wall Street career, he felt the need for a deeper sense of purpose, prompting his decision to step back, pursue impact-focused ventures, and enroll in the Sloan Fellows MBA program.

Raafet speaks candidly about the challenges and strengths of the immigrant experience—resilience, adaptation, and resourcefulness—which inspired his New Colossus Project. (YouTube) This initiative tells the stories of first-generation immigrant trailblazers in America, aiming to reframe the narrative around immigration and highlight its immense contributions to innovation and entrepreneurship. He also discusses how MIT Sloan became a space for personal transformation, where he stepped outside his comfort zone through courses in leadership, improvisation, and social media, all while reflecting on his identity and future direction.

Throughout the conversation, Raafet emphasizes the value of risk-taking, lifelong learning, and giving back to community. His evolving definition of success now centers on impact, connection, and legacy rather than titles or accolades. This episode is a powerful reflection on navigating change, finding one’s voice, and the importance of institutions like MIT Sloan in shaping not just careers, but lives.

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Learn more about MIT Sloan Alumni on Facebook, LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and Threads.

To support this show, or if you have an idea for a topic or a guest you think we should feature, drop us a note at sloanalumni@mit.edu

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In this episode from 2019, Christopher Reichert, MOT ‘04, sat down with David Schmittlein, former Dean (2007–2024) and Professor of Marketing at the MIT Sloan School of Management, to discuss many topics, including where he found inspiration in his personal and professional life.

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Thanks for listening! Find more episodes on the Sloanies Talking with Sloanies website.

Learn more about MIT Sloan Alumni on Facebook, LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and Threads.

To support this show, or if you have an idea for a topic or a guest you think we should feature, drop us a note at sloanalumni@mit.edu

© MIT SLOAN SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT